Tris and Tobias- Snippets
by SalvatoreStoleMyHeart
Summary: Each chapters are going to be glimpses into the lives of Tris and Tobias. They're all going to be one shots based around those two characters and not necessarily part of the same story, unless stated. Suggestions are very welcome as well as feedback!
1. Tris is

_Tris is kind._

Tobias hated the fact that everyone in the office liked her. They didn't see her in a romantic way, but just in general. She comes across as warm and welcoming. She's easy to talk to and open to everything. Although she may have some strong opinions about certain things, she will respect other people's point of view. Everyone who knows her has something good to say about her. She will always say hello to you, wave discretely, give you a head nod or acknowledge you in some way whenever you cross paths with her. When she walks into a common area, you can feel her presence before actually seeing her. The atmosphere feels calmer and lighter. Her aura is strong enough to shift the atmosphere. It pulls Tobias towards two different directions. On the one hand, it makes him proud of her because he is finally starting to admit to himself that he is falling in love with an amazing girl. However, he is also conscious that she is well liked and he probably isn't the only one to feel something for her. Nothing has ever happened between Tobias and Tris, but anyone working with them could see that there was some kind of mutual attraction between the two.

 _Tris is modest._

Tobias stood up from his desk and looked over to Tris just in time to see her finish a conversation with her project manager, Peter.

"It's done. The article has been sent", he heard her say.

"Well done, Tris," Peter replied and high – fived her.

Tobias smiled at the interaction. He knew that Tris was good at her job, but again, a little part of him was proud of her. Peter was a harsh boss. He didn't give a lot of compliments to his team, so when he did, you know that you've done an exceptionally good job. Tris smiled broadly and turned back to her computer, trying to keep her smile in check. She looked up once more to see Tobias staring at her. She gave a polite smile before typing away on her computer, blocking out the world around her in order to meet yet another deadline. Ever since Tris joined the company, she's hit the ground running. Projects were thrown at her on a daily basis, deadlines were to be met every couple of hours and she has been juggling everything. Some days she made it look like it was the easiest thing to do; wondering around the office, taking her time making her coffee in the kitchen, stopping to exchange a few words with others. However, other days, she could tear her hair out. She would walk with a vacant look, thinking about what she has done already and what else still needs to be done before the end of the day. From where he was sitting, Tobias could see someone approaching in his peripheral view. He turned his head and no doubt, Tris was walking towards him. His heart immediately started to hammer in his chest as he pretended to be deeply engrossed in his current task. He hated the fact that he felt like he was in high school again where he had to pretend to play it cool. Although some people had doubts about his feelings towards her, he wanted to keep it on the down- low as much as possible. He quickly glanced her way again, only to see that she had stopped at Will's desk, his boss. As they were going through a project together, Tris was scribbling notes on her paper until Uriah came along.

"Beatrice, Beatrice. The girl I was looking for!" Uriah started. "Will, did you know that without Tris, the presentation that we did yesterday would have gone horribly wrong? As the audience started firing questions at us, Tris single handedly answered every single one of them with no hesitation. Honestly, I wish you could have been there to see it. She saved our ass out there."

"That's Beatrice in a nut shell for you!", replied Will proudly.

Tris looked uncomfortable with the appraisal and lifted her gaze to meet Tobias'. He looked at her, raised his eyebrows and turned the side of his mouth downwards. He simultaneously gave a small nod, his way of saying "not bad!". Tris smiled a little, rolled her eyes and shook her head.

"You're just saying that. You would have been just fine without me, Uriah. You know everything like the back of your hand!" Tris answered, deflecting the compliments. Uriah was the kind of person who will always see the best part of people and he loved everyone just like everyone loved him. Although Tris knew that Uriah often compliments everyone, she took his compliment at heart and a part of her was proud of herself.

 _Tris is loyal and genuine._

Two qualities rarely seen in people nowadays.

"Zeke and I go for coffee every week. Usually it's the same time and same day, but some weeks we change things up a little bit," Tris was telling Tobias.

"You and Zeke, huh?" he couldn't stop himself from asking.

Tobias knew that there's nothing going on between the two of them. They simply work in the same team and Zeke was engaged to Shauna. However, there's a side of Tobias which has always been a little jealous of his best friend. Zeke gets to work closely with Tris and Tobias often catch them in the middle of a conversation before one of them would burst out laughing. He envies Zeke whenever he sees Tris stand up and walk up to Zeke's desk. Sometimes she sits down and they talk for a while and other times it is something that she needs from him which is work related. Every Thursday morning, Tobias sees Zeke wait for Tris by the door to go get coffee with her. Whenever they come back, Tris looks more relax and ready to start her day. Tobias has already questioned Zeke about it, unable to hide his curiosity.

"She talks", Zeke explained. "She says everything that is on her mind and she knows that I won't judge her. She loves her co-workers Nita and Lynn, but I think they can be quite over bearing at times. It's reciprocal too. Some days I'm the one who does all the talking and she simply listens and hears me out. She's important to have on the team. Somehow, she balances everything out."

 _Tris is fun and carefree._

Although she can pass for the quiet, discrete, introverted girl. Tris knew how to have a good time. Not necessarily going out for drinks or party, but simply taking things lightly. She didn't make a fuss of things and would avoid drama. Tobias loved that about her. Tris was conscientious of her surroundings and she always made sure that she was giving a positive image of herself. However, not everyone can be pleased and everybody cannot like everybody. If something happened or people were talking about her, she simply did not care about it. She knew exactly what was being said, but she keeps her head on her shoulders, and walks around the office like nothing is wrong. She's got the mental attitude where if someone has a problem with her, she expects them to come talk to her and be upfront about it. If no one says anything, Tris will simply assume that nothing is wrong. She doesn't listen to rumours either. She lets people think whatever they want about her, but as long as she knows the truth about herself, she doesn't care. People judge, it's a human instinct, but only a fair few get the actual picture. She is smart enough not to take things seriously and if someone joked with her, she will not hesitate to banter right back.

 _Tris is strong._

Tobias has witnessed some colleagues go through a hard time, and who is always there by their side? Tris. She somehow always knows the right thing to do or say. Tobias knew that she didn't have an easy life, yet, she walks around with a smile on her face every single day. Tobias often wondered how Tris can manage that. He's seen Tris upset in front of her computer before, but who comforts her when she needs it? He's caught her off guard a few times where she was taking deep breaths in front of her screen with glistening eyes. Tobias couldn't say that he knew Tris well enough to tell her that he was there, but he somehow hoped that she knew that. She's never explicitly told anyone what has happened to her in the past, but he's heard snippets here and there from various people. He's heard that both of her parents had passed away in a car accident only a few months ago. However, looking at her on a daily basis, you would never have guessed.

Unknown to Tris, one morning Tobias saw her walking towards the office with her earphones plugged in. On a closer look, he realised that she had tears streaming down her face and Tobias knew without a doubt that she was going to turn around and call in sick. He was surprised when he saw her lift her head and march into the building like she owned it. Stepping into reception, she swiftly made her way to the bathroom and 10 minutes later, she walked out without a tear stain on her cheeks. Tobias had observed all of that and kept a close eye on her throughout the day, waiting for the moment when Tris would loose it and call it a day. That moment never came. Tobias eventually cornered her in the kitchen area and casually asked if she was okay, like he would ask anyone else. She turned around with a wide smile, a twinkle in her eyes.

"I'm doing great! How are you, Tobias?", she replied.

He almost believed that he had imagined seeing her that morning, but whenever her tear stained face re-appeared in his mind, his heart clenched a little too much for it to simply be a figment of his imagination.

 _Tris, Tobias realised, is his everything._


	2. Unexpected

_AN: Probably M- Rated chapter! There is some swearing and brief mention of drugs in the chapter. Quite mild, but rather warn you just in case you are uncomfortable with those things._

* * *

Tobias was sitting at the back of "Buns & Pies" looking at the coming and going of customers. He started recognising the daily regulars, the ones who drop in once in a while and those who step in for the first time. He loves that coffee shop and every morning he goes there to write a couple more pages to his on coming murder mystery book. He's been having a writers block for a while, but ever since he started coming to "Buns & Pies", it's really helped him. Seeing the commotion taking place allows his mind to imagine different scenarios. Tobias' eyes landed on the new barista. He says "new" but it's been a couple of months since she started working at the coffee shop on a regular basis. Ever since he saw her, he couldn't help himself from thinking that she looked familiar in some way. He couldn't place her big hazel brown eyes, and her dirty blonde pixie haircut anywhere, yet he knew them. He knew her name from her tag, but even that didn't ring any bell.

"The usual for you, sir?"

"Tris, you can call me Tobias. I come here enough for you to call me by my first name."

"Sorry, just a habit."

"And yes please, the usual for me."

"Coming right up."

As Tris walked away, she couldn't stop herself from glancing back again at Tobias. His blue eyes piercing into hers whenever he talked to her, were so familiar. They never had a full on conversation, just the usual greeting and ordering food that you would expect between a waitress and customer. She wishes she could tell him straight off who she was, but for the time being, she had to keep quiet. "Focus Tris, focus!" she said to herself. She couldn't loose focus now, not when the end was so clearly in sight.

A man with dark hair entered the coffee shop and made a bee line for Tris, coming from behind and wrapping his arms around her waist, "Hey baby" he said while kissing her on the cheek.

"Edward! Not when I'm at work, I've already told you that. If my boss Christina catches me one more time, I'm out!"

Tobias stiffened when seeing the interaction between the two. Edward comes in every single day and stays until Tris' shift is finished. He watches her like a possessive boyfriend and Tobias didn't like it. Not at all. They only started dating a month ago, or at least that's when Edward starting coming every day to "Buns & Pies".

The coffee shop door opened once more and in walked Peter, another regular. Tris exchanged a quick glance towards Edward who squinted in Peter's direction. Safe to say that Peter was jealous of Edward and the two couldn't stand each other. However, they both kept their behaviour under control when in the coffee shop while trying to get Tris' attention.

"Hey Peter! What can I get you?", asked Tris cheerfully as she got her notepad and pen out the front pocket of her apron.

"2 eggs, sunny side up, 4 rashes of bacon, 3 hash browns and a large Oreo milkshake extra chunky", answered Peter in one breath.

"You'll never make it easy for me, will you?" asked Tris chuckling while making her way to the kitchen to put the order through.

Tobias hated that Tris was so friendly with Peter. There was absolutely nothing, in his opinion, that was good about that guy either. He too was very much like Edward, watching her every move while she worked. Tobias didn't get it. How did someone like Tris, who seemed so down to earth, sweet and kind, be friends with people who could easily be described as controlling. Tobias didn't want to use the word 'abusive' as he never had any evidence to prove it, but he didn't doubt that Edward may be verbally abusing towards his favorite waitress. One thing Tobias had to admit though was that both Peter and Edward were the perfect people to write about. He loved watching them and jotted down their mannerism, the way they speak, how they dress; they make the perfect vilains. By that time, Peter had already perched himself at the counter where not only he could see Tris work behind the counter but had a view of the entire coffee shop- his usual daily spot. Tobias looked at Edward once more and noticed that he was a bit more jittery than usual. He was looking around him every few seconds, as if scared of being caught for something.

"Oh good, you're here. I'll need you to cover an extra shift later this afternoon, if that's alright?" Christina, Tris' boss, said as she walked out of the storage room.

"No man, Chris! Tris and I have plans tonight!" shouted Edward from across the floor.

"You, shut it!" retorted Christina which made Tobias laugh. "I've got to run some errands, but I'll be back before we close for the day. If you need anything text me," she addressed Tris who nodded in response.

A few more customers walked in and settled at the various table and soon enough, the coffee shop had reached its peak hour where a line had started to form. Tris was running from table to table and dashing behind the counter to make a coffee, while shouting orders to the kitchen. Tobias couldn't help but feel sorry for her although he knew that it was her job and she could handle it. He felt helpless eating his bacon pancakes and sipping his black coffee.

As Tris was half running from Tobias' table to the counter, Edward grabbed her again by the waist when he got a chance and Tobias saw him slip a small see through package with white powder in it in Tris' pocket. It didn't take a genius to figure out what was happening.

"Get me the money," Edward whispered threateningly to Tris.

Tobias furrowed his eyebrows. Tris was the last person who would be taking drugs, yet alone, date a dealer. He had to remind himself that he didn't actually know her, no matter how familiar she might look. She's only been in the coffee shop for a couple of months and they've never properly talked. Tobias saw her give an extremely discrete head nod towards Peter who without wasting a second, jumped behind the counter to make coffee while Tris pretended to work the till. From where he was sitting, he could see Tris texting while picking at the bills in the cash register.

Tobias' mind was racing. What was going on? Who was she texting right after being passed a bag of drugs? Another dealer? Someone else to pass it on to? Why did she even nod at Peter to help her out? Fair enough, it was barely obvious and probably no one else saw, but Tobias' was a writer and he paid attention to all of those details.

"Woah woah woah, man! What do you think you're doing?" intervened Edward, looking at Peter with his eyebrows raised.

"Look, I'm just helping her out. She's over worked and there's no one helping her. Just trying to be friendly here," explained Peter putting his hands by his shoulders in a sign of defence.

"Trying to be friendly, huh? With my girlfriend? Is that what they call it now?" Edward replied as he stood up, ready for a fight.

Tobias could feel a shift in the atmosphere and had a feeling that something bad was about to happen.

Tris pulled out a couple of 20s from the till and passed it on to Edward.

"Come on, you can do better than that."

Tris shook her head, her eyes wide and her bottom lip trapped between her teeth.

"I can't get anymore out without it being suspicious," replied Tris in a feeble voice. Tobias could hear how afraid she was.

Without any warning, Edward jumped over the counter, pushed Tris towards the open till, pulled out a hand gun and shoved it against Tris' rib cage.

"You want to think your answer again, babe?"

"Edward, you're hurting me. Why are you doing this?" Tris asked, tears building up in her eyes.

"Edward, man, put the gun down. There's no need for that," said Tobias in a soothing voice. He had made his way to the bar as well to try and defend Tris. He didn't want anything to happen, especially when customers started to stare at them.

"Who the hell are you?" Edward yelled while swivelling to point his gun at Tobias. While doing so, he let go of Tris whos scattered towards the other end of the counter, rummaged through the coffee stock before standing up, her own gun in hand, pointing it steadily at Edward's head.

"POLICE! Drop your gun! Drop your gun Edward. NOW!" shouted Tris. She flashed her police badge which was hidden in her apron pocket. All signs of the afraid, feeble, victimised barista Tris was completely gone. Instead, it was Tris who was in control, authoritative and determined. "Put your hands behind your head and turn around, face the wall!"

"You're a fucking cop?" Edward asked horrified, pointing his gun at Tris again.

"She said put the gun down," repeated Peter who was by Tris' side, his gun also pointed at Edward.

Edward's only chance out was through the front door and without giving it a second thought, he made a beeline for it. He hadn't even taken two steps that the door flew open and in came Christina, not in her jeans and green sweater like she was wearing on her way out "Buns & Pies" but in her own police uniform. In a smooth movement she had Edward's hands pinned behind his back and handcuffed.

"Edward Moyes, you're under arrest for possession and dealing" stated Christina. "I'm bringing you back to the station, you have the right to remain silent until your lawyer is involved."

"Does anyone actually fucking work here, or is this just some kind of sick joke?"

"It's called being undercover, dumbass. Regular staff will be back on starting tomorrow now that we've busted your ass," chimed in Peter. He turned around to face Tris, "Hey Prior! That was a good one! First undercover mission accomplished. You can be proud Rookie!" Peter congratulated her.

"Well... I couldn't have done it without you, Hayes! We did good!"

"Well, as your training officer, all I can say is that you learn from the best" Peter replied smugly which made Tris chuckle. "See you at the station? We'll need your statement."

"You bet!" Tris answered. She turned around to see Tobias staring at her in disbelief and made her way towards him.

"So... safe to say you're not a barista, but a cop," he started, stating the obvious.

"I'm a cop," she replied. "Sorry I lied to you about that, but I couldn't exactly blow my cover just for a guy that I know from my past."

"Beatrice Prior." Tobias stated.

"You figured it out!"

"I remember you now. We used to go to high school together, at Dauntless. I figure you already know who I am?"

"I'm a cop, Four! What did you expect? Of course I recognised you, from the minute you stepped through that front door."

"Four! Ha! Well that's a name I haven't heard in a while. I remember you so clearly now. You were the one who surprised everyone when you said you were going to be a cop one day. No one believed you cause all you did back in high school was spend your entire days in the art room painting random stuff", Tobias reminisced back to 10 years ago.

"And you always said you were going to be a writer... I hope all of those mornings here paid off?"

"It's definitely helped. Look, I don't want this to come across as too forward or anything, but it feels really good to see you again after so long and and after the stunt you just pulled off, we clearly have loads to catch up on. I was wondering if perhaps you wanted to hang out sometime?" asked Tobias while scratching the back of his neck.

"You still do that when you're nervous," observed Tris with a smile. Tris took a napkin from the table and scribbled her number down. "Here you go. I've got to shoot back to the station to give in my statement about this whole thing, but I'll see you soon?"

"See you soon, Tris", Tobias replied, glad that he had found his high school crush again. Perhaps life had given him a second chance for him to make something out of this, and not keep it to just a crush.

Tobias smiled at the thought of seeing Tris again.


End file.
